Water Containing strontium and other radioactive substances has flowed into the Pacific Ocean from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant

Water Containing strontium and other radioactive substances has flowed into the Pacific Ocean from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant

Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Tuesday that around 150 liters of water containing strontium and other radioactive substances has flowed into the Pacific Ocean from its crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

The utility known as TEPCO said the amount of radioactive substances is estimated at around 26 billion becquerels, adding that the impact would be "negligible" even if people continue to eat marine products from the area.

The water leaked from a water processing facility after undergoing a process to remove radioactive cesium. But the facility is not capable of removing strontium, which tends to accumulate in bones and is feared to cause bone cancer and leukemia.

The seawater near the plant has already been contaminated not only by massive radioactive fallout since the March 11 earthquake and tsunami triggered the nuclear crisis, but also by accidental releases of polluted water.

In the latest case, TEPCO found on Sunday that around 45 tons of water had accumulated inside a building housing part of the water processing facility and some of it was seeping through a concrete crack in the building to a nearby gutter, which leads to the sea about 500 meters away.

According to TEPCO's press release, the water contained radioactive materials including about 11 billion becquerels of strontium-89, 15 billion becquerels of strontium-90 and 4.4 million becquerels of cesium-137. Read More